Pink Lady apple roses with honey

Recently, a group of our friends decided to start a supper club. The first to accept the challenge, was my oldest friend Zani. (By trade, she also happens to be a chef…) To give you a taste of what we’re up against, this is how her dinner menu read:

• Nibbles: Truffle popcorn
• Hors d’oeuvre: Saki & Ponzu oyster shots
• Starter: Snails in a garlic nut butter, served on parmesan ‘slap pap’ (this is basically fine textured porridge; think ‘white creamy polenta’) , topped with pork crackling sprinkle.
• Main: Roast, stuffed quail, served on a bed of saffron risotto with a smoked tomato and pepper sauce.
• Dessert: Almond and fig empanadas with a blue cheese Ice cream
• After: Nespresso and popping candy dark chocolate truffles.

In short, we’re in a spot of trouble… Ever since we relished this delightful meal, we’ve been on the lookout for ideas as we’re next in line to impress our friends with our cooking finesse. On account of our formal education not being in the culinary arts, we have to rely on great-looking, yummy-tasting food that is really easy to prepare. Enter the apple rose.

For some time now, these pretty little pastries have been spotted all over the internet, and it is about time we try them out.

Note: For the most part, the recipes I found use apricot jam as opposed to honey to line the pastry, but I do like the taste of honey, and nothing forms better golden droplets than a good runny honey. You could also use red apples of your choice- my favourite apple is pink ladies- they also juice like a charm.

Ingredients

• One sheet of puff pastry sheet
• 2 pink lady apples
• juice of ½ a lemon
• ¼ cup flour for dusting the puff pastry
• 3 tbsp honey for the roses
• Cinnamon
• Icing sugar and honey for serving

Rolling pin and a floured work surface

Rolling pin, pastry brush and heated honey

Apple roses in a muffin tin, ready for the oven

Method

• Cut the apples in half (top-down), core, and cut them in to thin slices of about 1mm- 2mm thickness. (The slices that are too thin, tend to darken before the pastry is fully cooked.)
• In a large bowl, pour enough water to cover the apple slices, and add the lemon, and sliced apple.

• Depending on the thickness of your apple slices, microwave the apple in the lemon water for 45 seconds – 3 minutes. The heat will soften the apples and make the slices more flexible/ pliable when rolling.
• Unroll the puff pastry; sprinkle with flour to avoid sticking; roll it out to about 2-3mm in thickness; slice the pastry crosswise into 6 strips. (5-6 cm in width)

• Coat one side of the puff pastry with honey- you can heat the honey for 30 sec in the microwave to make it more liquid, and easier to apply.

• On the top edge of the puff pastry, arrange the apple slices in a row, skin side up. Remember to over-lap each slice by about 60-70% with the next slice for the entire length of the dough strip.

• Sprinkle with cinnamon, and fold the bottom of the puff pastry up, to encase the cut side of the apple slices in puff pastry.

• Starting at one side of the dough strip, roll the pastry up to form the rose shape.

• Place the apple roses in a cupcake or muffin tin and bake at 200°C for 40-45 minutes, until the pastry is cooked.

• Remove from the oven, and serve sprinkled with icing sugar, and drizzled with honey.

Pink Lady Apple Roses

Baked apple roses

Pink Lady Apple Roses

Baked apple roses

Apple Roses ready to bake

Pink Lady Apple Roses

These dainty pastries might just be the dessert we were looking for. Now to find that perfect pairing for our dinner. Perhaps an old school Chantilly cream; honeyed custard and walnuts; or a lavender honey ice cream… Hmmm. Let the experimenting begin!